Little Women Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Little Women Blu-ray Movie Review

Nothing "little" about it.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III November 15, 2023

Adapted to a variety of media countless times during the last 100+ years (most recently as Greta Gerwig's 2019 film starring Saoirse Ronan), Louisa May Alcott's coming-of-age novel Little Women first arrived on the big screen in 1917 and 1918 as two separate silent productions now considered lost films. George Cukor's 1933 pre-Code sound version, then, is the earliest adapted variant of its source material surviving today, and it's also arguably the best with a fine lead performance from Katharine Hepburn only one year into her long and lustrous career. This de facto original film version has now been given new life on Warner Archive's recent Blu-ray edition, a well-rounded disc that continues their streak of rock-solid restorations for catalog titles rescued from the WB, MGM, and RKO vaults.

In a slight change of pace later borrowed by the well-received 1994 adaptation starring Winona Ryder -- perhaps my other favorite alongside this version, if we're picking and choosing -- Cukor's version clearly focuses its perspective and plot much more on Josephine "Jo" March (Hepburn) than her three sisters Amy (Joan Bennett), Meg (Frances Dee), and Beth (Jean Parker), and not to its detriment. The luxurious 115-minute runtime creates a well-rounded and smoothly paced drama, one that doesn't take any considerable risks and thus follows the novel's general plot fairly faithfully... which, unless you're entirely new to this 150+ year-old story, you certainly won't need a refresher on.

I wouldn't say that the cast or production design of this 1933 version give it an edge over later adaptations, as some have greatly succeeded in that department as well. But the latter is especially impressive for its time, boasting nicely detailed sets and costume designs that greatly enhance its period-specific atmosphere. (It's been said that one of the dresses worn by Hepburn was modeled after one of her grandmother’s gowns as seen in an original tintype photo.) It's a "total package" film and no doubt aided greatly by uncredited producer David O. Selznick, who had already signed a contract with MGM after completing his term at RKO but supervised this production as his final project with the studio. The fact that Little Women was filmed just six years after the advent of sound films makes it all the more impressive from a technical standpoint, yet solid direction and performances helps it connect on an emotional level too.

Unsurprisingly, this commercial and critical success was nominated for three Academy Awards, including "Outstanding Production" (Best Picture) and "Best Director", but was only awarded one for its adapted screenplay by the husband-and-wife team of Victor Heerman and Sarah Y. Mason. Surprisingly, Katharine Hepburn was not nominated for her lead role; she was too busy winning her first Best Actress Oscar for the part of Eva Lovelace in Lowell Sherman's Morning Glory, released three months earlier (and surely a solid candidate for a future Warner Archive Blu-ray).

Little Women Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Like many nitrate films from this era of cinema, Warner Archive has given Little Women a fresh restoration beginning with a new 4K scan of the "best-available preservation elements"; usually, this indicates a majority of footage from the negative with sporadic inserts from an interpositive or other good-quality source. The result is a stable foundation for their meticulous method of manual cleanup, one that carefully erases most if not all age-related wear-and-tear while preserving the film grain of this black-and-white beauty. A few missing frames dot the landscape, but they're rarely distracting and forgivable under the circumstances. Otherwise there are no real compromises made here, with only occasional scenes dipping ever-so-slightly into "soft" territory while still retaining a majority of original textures and grain levels. Shadow detail, black levels, and contrast are carefully controlled to avoid black crush and blooming, while strong disc encoding ensures no compression-related artifacts stand in the way of a true theatrical-grade presentation. Much like the bulk of Warner Archive's releases, it's about as close to 4K as 1080p can get, so die-hard fans will be pleased to know that earlier editions -- including Warner Bros.' own 2010 DVD -- can safely be retired.

Little Women Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Warner Archive's DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix follows suit with a very clean and stable split-channel presentation of its original source, one that features crisp and intelligible dialogue as well as good balance between background effects and the varied original score by RKO house composer Max Steiner. Occasional and mostly forgivable speed bumps pop up intermittently, such as light hissing and a few faint pops, but this is a otherwise a consistently solid restoration that sounds noticeably better than most films of this era. Again, its a solid improvement over the 2010 DVD edition's less polished and lossy Dolby Digital audio track, making this a definitive A/V presentation on both fronts.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are offered during the main feature only, not the extras listed below.

Little Women Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a standard keepcase with original poster-themed cover artwork and no inserts of any kind. The vintage bonus features are perhaps a bit more varied than usual but overwhelmingly fall into the category of "pre-show entertainment" rather than retrospective or purely film-focused. That's not a complaint, of course.

• Jack Haley in Salt Water Daffy (21:14) - A Vitaphone comedy short from 1933, this one-reeler stars Jack Haley and Shemp Howard as thieves who accidentally join the Navy after swiping an Admiral's watch.

• In the Dough (21:48) - This 1932 Vitaphone short features Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle in one of his last on-screen roles as a new bakery hire who has to deal with a mob protection racket on his first day.

• I Like Mountain Music (6:56) - When the cat's away, a drugstore comes to life at night as various characters from the magazine rack spring from the pages, including unruly mobsters and Sherlock Holmes himself.

• The Organ Grinder (7:16) - Another 1933 Merrie Melodies short directed by Rudolf Ising, this restored cartoon features an organ grinder and his mischievous monkey doing their thing on a busy NYC street.

• Scoring Stage Suite of Recordings (25:01) - Essentially a condensed version of an isolated film score, this running collection of audio clips features Max Steiner's score uninterrupted by dialogue and effects.

• Theatrical Trailer (3:01) - This extended vintage promotional piece -- quite the rarity, as the wide majority of RKO trailers are either quite hard to find or considered lost at this point -- can also be seen here.

Little Women Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

George Cukor's 1933 production of Little Women is the earliest surviving film adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's celebrated coming-of-age novel, and might just be the best thanks to its sturdy construction, steady pace, and a winning early career performance from Katharine Hepburn. Warner Archive's Blu-ray gives it plenty of support with another top-tier restoration and a welcome mixture of pre-show entertainment that makes this one of the boutique label's most well-rounded discs in recent months. Firmly Recommended to fans and first-timers alike.